SENATOBIA - Nearly three years after the sudden loss of longtime Northwest strength and conditioning coach Danny Ray Cole, Northwest has formally dedicated the weight room at the Ranger Football Complex in his honor.

Numerous family members, friends and former colleagues of Cole came together in a formal ceremony on Friday morning. Northwest President Dr. Michael J. Heindl provided opening remarks, followed by a handful of stories shared by Mike Dottorey and head baseball coach Mark Carson.

Though the ceremony was held on Friday, the Northwest Board of Trustees approved the naming of the weight room for Cole earlier this spring. 

Cole passed away on May 31, 2020, shortly after completing his 19th year on the athletic staff at Northwest. He arrived in 2001 as the strength and conditioning coach for the Rangers, while also serving as the defensive line coach under head coaches Bobby Franklin (2001-04) and Randy Pippin (2005-08). During this stint, Cole coached 13 All-MACJC players, including NJCAA All-American Chris Herring, who compiled 86 total tackles, 35 hurries, 22 tackles-for-loss and 10 sacks in 2003.

His impact at Northwest stretched far beyond football, as he provided strength and conditioning training for all Ranger sports. 

In March 2010, Cole was named the Junior College Strength Coach of the Year by Samson's in the March 2010 issue of American Football Monthly magazine. Prior to Northwest, he spent 10 years as a defensive line and strength coach at South Panola High School, helping the Tigers to a pair of Class 5A state titles in 1993 and 1999.

Away from the playing field, Cole lifted weights as a hobby, earning him a place as one of the "Strongest Men in Mississippi" by the Mississippi High School Coaches Association. He competed in the super heavyweight category of 300 pounds and up and can bench press 600 pounds and squat 900 and once qualified for the 1986 Olympic team as a world-class bencher.